Ad Operations Manager 1 at The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)

JOB PURPOSE

• The Ad Operations Manager is responsible for leading and optimising the entire digital advertising delivery ecosystem for SABC - including direct-sold campaigns, campaigns executed via external digital sales partners (e.g., MediaMark, MediaNorth, Arise/365 Digital), and programmatic campaigns via SSPs/DSPs (Castoola, Magnite, Adform, etc.).
• This role ensures operational excellence, yield maximisation, governance and revenue assurance, partner enablement, and continuous process improvement in a multi-platform, multi-channel environment.

MAIN OBJECTIVES (KEY PERFORMANCE AREA)

JOB OUTPUTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THIS POSITION

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR

DELIVERY LEADERSHIP & CAMPAIGN EXECUTION       

• Oversee the setup, trafficking, QA, pacing and delivery for all campaigns (direct, partner, programmatic).
• Lead the Ad Ops team in ensuring campaigns launch on time, hit targets, and meet quality standards.
• Resolve high-level trafficking or delivery issues and ensure escalation processes are in place. 

PROGRAMMATIC + YIELD STRATEGY        

• Develop and execute programmatic strategy: deal types (PMP/PG), floor price policy, yield optimisation across SSPs/DSPs.
• Monitor supply path, auction dynamics (Magnite, Adform), fill rates, eCPM/net revenue by channel/device.
• Implement pricing controls (UPR/floor), segment inventory (geo, device, format) for increased yield.       

GOVERNANCE, REPORTING & COMPLIANCE    

• Ensure all campaigns are compliant with PFMA, internal policies, partner contracts and ad-tech vendor SLAs.
• Lead reconciliation between ad server/SSP /finance (SAP) to verify delivery vs bookings/invoicing.
• Consolidate reporting across Castoola, Magnite, Adform, and partner systems for unified dashboards.
• Maintain audit-ready documentation and reporting.      

PARTNER & STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION   

• Serve as the operational link between SABC and its digital sales partners and tech vendors.
• Standardise operational workflows, traction, reporting templates for partners.
• Conduct partner performance reviews, SLA monitoring, training/adoption of tools.    

TEAM LEADERSHIP & PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

• Lead and develop the Ad Ops team (Executives, Specialists), build capability.
• Identify process inefficiencies, implement best practices / automation within ad ops workflows.
• Drive continuous improvement in campaign delivery, tech stack, and reporting.

INHERENT REQUIREMENT

FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS:

• NQF 6/7 diploma / degree or equivalent in Marketing, Digital Business, Media, or similar field.
• Additional certification/training in AdTech, Programmatic Advertising or Digital Media preferred.

EXPERIENCE:             

• 5-8 years in digital ad operations / campaign management / programmatic environments, with at least 2 years in a leadership or supervisory role.
• Demonstrated experience with ad serving platforms (e.g., Castoola, Google Ad Manager, Xandr, Freewheel), SSPs/DSPs (Magnite, Adform, The Trade Desk, DV360).
• Experience in managing yield, pricing/floor strategy, partner/vendor relationships, and cross-functional teams.
• Proven experience in troubleshooting, trafficking, and reporting across multiple systems.
• Prior exposure to working with external sales partners or agencies is an advantage.

KNOWLEDGE:             

• Strong understanding of the digital advertising ecosystem: ad servers, SSPs, DSPs, PMP/PG deal types, real-time bidding, inventory management.
• Excellent analytical skills: able to interpret performance data, identify optimisation opportunities, and translate into strategy.
• Proven ability to design, implement and improve workflows and processes (particularly in campaign delivery and programmatic operations).
• Leadership & stakeholder management skills: able to lead a team, engage with sales, finance, tech & partner teams, and represent operations in senior forums.
• Commercial acumen: understands revenue drivers, pricing, yield optimisation, financial reconciliation and governance.
• Problem-solving orientation: able to identify root causes of delivery or performance issues, propose corrective actions.
• High attention to detail, strong organisational skills, capable of managing multiple campaigns and priorities.